Sports

McCall helps Stanford women race past Gonzaga in hoops win

Erica McCall recorded a double-double with a career-high 23 points and 13 rebounds. Photo by Bob Drebin/isiphotos.com

Erica McCall recorded a double-double with a career-high 23 points and 13 rebounds, Lili Thompson added 21 points and the 16th-ranked Stanford women's basketball team closed the game on a 19-1 run to beat host Gonzaga, 65-48, at McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane on Sunday.

Stanford (2-0) will host No. 21 George Washington on Saturday at noon in its home opener.

Merete Lutz

A 3-pointer by Lili Thompson put the Cardinal up, 46-38, with 8:50 to play, but the Bulldogs responded with nine straight points, taking a 47-46 lead on Kiara Kudron's free throw at the 6:23 mark.

McCall answered with a layup for the 11th and final lead change before the Cardinal hit three straight 3s. Thompson sandwiched a pair around one from Karlie Samuelson for a 57-47 lead with 4:02 to go.

Gonzaga was 0-of-12 shooting over the closing run, shooting 31 overall. The Bulldogs were 3-of-21 from behind the arc and 9-of-20 from the foul line, including 1-of-10 in the third and fourth quarters.

Elle Tinkle, the younger sister of former Cardinal Joslyn Tinkle and the daughter of Oregon State men's head coach Wayne Tinkle, scored 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting in the first 20 minutes, but was held scoreless in the final 20. Tinkle and Jill Barta (11) were Gonzaga's scorers in double figures.

The Cardinal just 34.4 percent (11-of-32) in the first half and made just one of its eight 3-point attempts (12.5 percent). In the second half, Stanford hit 12-of-25 from the floor (48 percent) and 5-of-7 from behind the arc (71.4 percent). Brittany McPhee hit a triple with 3:07 left in the third period, which started a run of five straight successful 3-pointers from Stanford.

McCall scored nine of her game-high 23 in the third quarter and finished the afternoon 9-of-17 from the floor. In two games this season, McCall is averaging 16.5 points and 12.0 rebounds.

Coming off the bench while recovering from a minor injury, Lili Thompson looked like her old self in Spokane. She scored 21 points in 29 minutes and adding three assists against just one turnover. It's the first time Stanford has had two 20-point scorers in the same game since Jan. 23, 2015 at UCLA.

Kaylee Johnson grabbed 10 rebounds, the sophomore's 19th career game with at least 10.

Stanford (18-6 overall, 12-4 Pac-12) hosts Colorado on Thursday at 4 p.m., ahead of the men's basketball game against SMU at 8:30 p.m.

Against the Cougars, Stanford hit .294 while holding Washington State to a .169 clip. The Cardinal out dug the Cougars, 55-47, and won the block column, 13-12, despite WSU posting eight blocks in the second set.

Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Merete Lutz led all players with 16 kills, hitting .464, to go with six blocks. Middle blocker Ivana Vanjak finished the match 7-0-10 for a .700 attack percentage and six blocks.

Senior setter Madi Bugg notched her team-best 11th double-double with 45 assists and 13 digs. Senior outside hitter Brittany Howard registered 10 kills on 25 errorless swings to hit .400, while also racking up 11 digs and two blocks. She now has eight double-doubles on the year.

Freshman opposite Hayley Hodson returned from injury to post her 10th double-double of the season with 15 kills and 11 digs. Senior outside hitter Jordan Burgess added eight kills, five digs and three blocks, while freshman libero Halland McKenna finished with 11 digs, five assists and matched her season-high with two aces.

Freshman McKenna Woodford paced the Cougars with 15 kills, six digs and three blocks. Junior outside hitter Kyra Holt, who missed the first meeting between the two teams earlier this season, finished with 12 kills and 12 digs.

The Cardinal (21-7, 5-4 MPSF) stood toe-to-toe with the Golden Bears for three quarters, who held a one-goal advantage heading into the final period. Cal pulled away with four late goals to seal the victory.

The Golden Bears came out strong, scoring two goals in the first 43 seconds, but Stanford responded with goals from Jackson Kimbell and Bret Bonanni to tie the game at two.

After Odysseas Masmanidis gave Cal a 3-2 lead to finish the first quarter, Stanford answered again with goals by Griffin Bolan and BJ Churnside to take a 4-3 lead.

The Cardinal padded its advantage with goals by Bonanni, Chase and Blake Parrish to make it 8-6 with 5:58 in the fourth quarter. The Golden Bears went on to score seven unanswered goals to finish the contest, denying Stanford a win in its final home game on the season.

Stanford returns to action on Friday when it competes in the MPSF Tournament, where it will meet host USC at 11:30 a.m.

Wrestling

Redshirt sophomores Connor Schram (125 pounds) and Garet Krohn (184 pounds) placed first at the Roadrunner Open for the Cardinal, Sunday, in Fresno.

Up next, Stanford plays host to No. 1 Penn State in its home opener next Sunday. The dual will be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks.

Women's tennis

Juniors Taylor Davidson and Caroline Doyle notched their second doubles title in three weeks, claiming the consolation crown at the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.

Davidson and Doyle, who last month teamed up for the first time in their careers, defeated Ohio State's Miho Kowase and Anna Sanford, 6-4, 6-2, on Sunday morning.

After being edged by Florida's Brooke Austin and Kourtney Keegan 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (7) on Thursday in the second round of the main draw, Davidson and Doyle bounced back to win three consecutive consolation matches.